How we fund research across Canada

Your donations fund cancer research excellence across Canada. We’ve developed a process to identify and select the most promising projects with the greatest potential for impact. This video takes you inside a gold-standard review process that is renowned in this country and beyond.

Every year, researchers working in hospitals and academic and research centres across Canada apply for funds through the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS). They seek support for a variety of cancer research projects – from basic lab research to clinical trials to studies in cancer prevention, population health and quality of life. CCS offers research grants and awards to individuals and to teams or groups of researchers.

Cancer research is expensive. A scientist who operates a research lab could spend $50,000 to $500,000 each year on equipment and salaries. The cost of purchasing cancer cells for just 1 experiment ranges from $300 to $500. And cancer research is time-consuming – it can take years to complete a single study.